Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton‘s health has been questioned by top Republican officials.

Reuters

Top Republican officials on Sunday defended raising questions about Hillary Clinton’s health and age as she weighs a presidential bid in 2016.

“Health and age is fair game,” said Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus on NBC. “I’m not a doctor. What I do know is that the issue is going to come up as it does for any person running for president.”

Added former Vice President Dick Cheney, who appeared on Fox: “Any presidential candidate or vice presidential candidate is going to have to answer questions about their health.”

The comments come after longtime GOP political operative Karl Rove, a regular contributor to The Wall Street Journal editorial pages, referenced a health scare Mrs. Clinton, a Democrat, suffered in December 2012. She became dehydrated, fainted and sustained a concussion, according to statements from her doctors and the State Department. Doctors later found and treated a blood clot between her brain and skull. Mr. Rove said at an event earlier this month that she suffered a “traumatic brain injury” and should disclose more details about it, The Wall Street Journal reported last week.

Mrs Clinton hasn’t yet announced whether she will run. Her spokesman previously said Mr. Rove was “flat out lying” in his remarks about her health and said the remarks amounted to a “desperate” attack. “They are scared of what she has achieved and what she has to offer,” the spokesman said.

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D., Mo.), appearing later on NBC, said Mr. Rove was struggling to be relevant and that his raising concerns about Mrs. Clinton was a cheap political shot.

Mr. Rove also said Mrs. Clinton would be 69 on election day in 2016. Appearing on Fox on Sunday, he said his remarks were about the considerations she would be weighing in deciding whether to run for president. If elected, she’d be the second-oldest person to be sworn in behind Ronald Reagan.

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